allen



Feb. 14, 1956 E. l.. ALLEN DETACHABLE LOCK ROD CONNECTION 5 Sheets-Sheet l Original Filed May '7, 1947 my M 5 5 All. I m1,. -I r\ INVENroR. F-IG. l 50W/N L. `AME/v ATTORNEYS.

Feb. 14, 1956 E. L. ALLEN 2,734,761

DETACHABLE LOCK ROD CONNECTION Original Filed May 7, 1947 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. Z Df INVENTOR. EDWIN L .ALLE/V @4a/Mlm mwN/WNS E. L. ALLEN DETACHABLE LOCK ROD` CONNECTION Feb. 14, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 original Filed May 7, 1947 INH.:

INVENTOR. EDW/N L. ALLEN ATTORNEYS nited States Patent I f DETACHABLE LOCK ROD CONNECTION Edwin L. Allen, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, assignor, by mesne assignments, to Rudolph I. Schonitzer, Cleveland, Ohio Original application May 7, 1947, Serial No. 746,521, now

Patent No. 2,658,783, dated November 10, 1953. Divided and this application March 27, 1952, Serial No. 278,944

12 Claims. (Cl. 292-216) The invention of this application, which is a division of my prior application Serial No. 746,521, filed May 7, 1947, for Door Control Mechanism, now Patent No. 2,658,783, granted November 10, 1953, pertains to door control mechanisms and more particularly to apparatus for effecting and controlling the latching, or latching and locking, of doors of the type commonly used on automotive vehicles. In the Rudolph I. Schonitzer United States Patents Nos. 2,094,413 and 2,156,874, which issued on September 28, 1937, and May 2, 1939, respectively, certain door control mechanisms are described and claimed. The present invention relates to improvements in this general class of door control apparatus.

This type of door control mechanism may be broadly described as having coacting elements associated with the door and door frame structures Vwhereby the door may be latched and held in closed position or released from closed position to permit opening thereof, and as including means whereby one of these co-acting elements is retained in operative or door latched position when the door is closed and, when the mechanism is actuated to permit opening of the door, is moved into perated or door unlatched position by means of a power element such as a spring or the like.

Modern automobile body design requires that door latching and locking mechanisms which are used to control the vehicle doors occupy a minimum of space in order that the mechanisms may be incorporated in the doors without interferring with the raising and lowering of the window glass and without requiring an rundesirable increase in the width of Vthe door lock pillars or window frames. Automobile door control mechanism must also, of course, be extremely rugged and fool-proof and aiford means for positively holding the door closed under most severe operating conditions. 1t is also desirable that means be incorporated in or associated with automobile door control mechanisms whereby one or more of the vehicle doors can be locked against unauthorized opening thereof and such locking means should be operable either from inside or outside of the vehicle.

Accordingly, among the objects of my present invention is the provision, in a door control mechanism having a locking or restraining member for preventing' release of the mechanism from operative or door latched position, of inside and outside actuating means for the restraining member, each of which actuating means is at all times fully operable to move the restraining mem-` ber into or out of its restraining position; the provision in a door control mechanism of means for operatively associating inside and outside actuating elements with a latch locking or restraining member whereby either of said inside or outside actuating elements may be operated to move the restraining member into or out of restraining position regardless of the position in which the restraining member may have previously been set by ,the other actuating element; the provision of a door control mechanism for automobile doors or the like which occupies a minimum of space and 'in which the moving ICC parts are eiiectively protected from undesirable matter such as dirt, sprayed paint, ice, etc., and undesirable engagement with structural or operating elements, such as the glass run channel, etc., which might interfere with the proper functioning of the door control mechanism; and the provision of an improved compact, rugged door control mechanism which is particularly susceptible to easy installation and economical manufacture.

The above and other objects of my invention will appear from the following description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view, taken on the plane of line 1 1 of Figure 2, illustrating my door control mechanism installed in an automobile door with the latch in operative or door latched position and the locking or restraining means in locked or restraining position, the inner or far panel of the door being seen behind the door control mechanism and the outer or near panel being omitted.

Figure 2 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view of the upper part of the door control mechanism taken as if from the left in Figure 1, the inner panel of the door being at the left and the outer panel at the right.

Figure 3 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken on line 3 3 of Figures 1 and 2, the facing material on the inside of the inner panel being omitted.

Figure 4 is a detached side elevational view of my improved door control unit looking toward the inner face thereof, the parts being shown in operative or door latched position.

Figure 5 is a side elevation of the unit shown in y.Figure 4, taken on line 5 5 of Figure 4, and

Figure 6 is a view of the opposite side of the unit, taken on line 6 6 of Figure 4.

Although I have illustrated in the drawings, and will describe herein, my invention as applied to automobile doors, it will be understood that my improved apparatus is adaptable for use with numerous other types of doors or closures and where the term door is used herein it is intended that it be given its broadest meaning. Furthermore, although I have disclosed herein an arrangement wherein the movable latch member and its associated parts are carried by the door (the stationary keeper member being carried by the door frame), it will .be understood this arrangement may be reversed. So also the illustrated movable bifurcated latch member (see rFigure 4) which coacts with the stationary keeper pin on the door frame may be reversed or interchanged so that the movable latch member includes a pin and the stationary keeper is of bifurcated or slotted form. Accordingly, the phrase latch member is used in this `speciiication and the accompanying claims as a broad descriptive term and is not intended to be restricted to the latch member shown in the drawings.

in Figure 1 I have illustrated my improved door control mechanism as installed in the left-hand front door of an automobile, the door being hinged atits extreme forward or left-hand edge and adapted to close at its rearward or right-hand edge against the usual body lock pillar (not shown). As is apparent from Figures 2 and 3, the door has the usual outer panel 1 and inner panel r2. The edge wall 3 (Figures l and 3) closes the rear edge of the door structure and forms the outer wall of the door lock pillar 4. Suitable means, not shown, are provided for raising and lowering the window glass 5, which is supported and guided in glass run channels 54. It will be understood that the closer to the edge wall 3 that the rear glass run channel can be located, the narrower can be the upper portion of thedoor lock pillar 4. Visibility from within the vehicle is of course improved by making the pillar 4 .as narrow as possible.

My door control mechanism includes a main housing or frame structure, generally indicated in Figure 4, which is mounted by screws on the inner face of the edge wall 3 of the door, a movable latch member L pivotally supported by the housing adjacent the outer surface of the edge wall 3 and movable substantially parallel thereto, an outside latch operating member in the form of a push button assembly B (Figures 2 and 3), an outside keycontrolled actuating unit (not shown) for the latch restraining or locking means, and inside actuating means for the latch restraining or locking means, described in detail later. The above general description is made to give a general understanding of a typical installation of my mechanism in a door.

As is best seen in Figures 4 to 6, inclusive, the housing of the door control mechanism installed in the automobile door of Figures l and 2 includes a base plate 7 forming one side wall of the housing and adapted to be held against the inner surface of door edge wall 3 by screws 6 engaging threaded holes 6 in base plate 7, and a cover plate 8 extending generally parallel to and spaced from base plate 7. Integrally formed end walls 9 and 10 extend from cover plate 8 and are secured to base plate 7 as by bent over tangs or lugs 11 and 12 (Figures 4 and 5). One edge of the housing is substantially closed by the edge wall or side flange 13 (Figure 6) which may conveniently be formed integrally with the base plate 7 and which, as will appear more fully later, projects somewhat beyond cover plate 8 and supports the latch restraining or locking means and the actuating members therefor.

Extending through and having suitable bearing in the base plate 7 is the latch shaft 14 (Figure l). The latch member L is secured to the outer end of shaft 14 and, in the illustrated form of my invention, is bifurcated as indicated in Figure 4 to form a pair of spaced portions which may be termed, in accordance with their primary functions, the latch arm and door throw-out and/or latch cocking arm. Mounted on the inner end of shaft 14 within the housing is the latch control element 17 (Figure 1), it being understood that both the latch member L and the control element 17 are pivotally supported by the shaft 14 to have limited oscillating movement. A spiral spring 18 is disposed substantially coaxially or concentric with and adjacent the inner face of the latch control element 17 and has its inner end operatively connected to control element 17. The outer end of spring 18 extends downwardly through an aperture in the bottom end wall and is bent to retain it in proper operating position.

Spiral spring 18 is installed under tension and tends to rotate shaft 14, together with latch member L and latch control element 17, in unlatching or door opening direction (clockwise as seen in Figure 4). In order to maintain latch member L in position to hold the door closed, a detent D is pivotally supported above the control element 17 on a pin 21 which is secured as by riveting to the housing. A spring supported at its lower end by bottom end wall 10 presses at its upper end against detent D, a slot 26 in edge wall 13 guiding the mid-portion of spring 25 against displacement. Control element 17 and detent D are provided with cooperating abutments as indicated in Figure 4, in which latch member L, latch control element 17 and detent D are shown in dotted lines in the positions they assume when the door with which the apparatus is associated is in closed and latched position. As the spiral spring 18 tends to move the latch L in unlatching or door opening direction, the apparatus is in what may be termed operative or door latched position.

From the above description it will be seen that the detent D is constantly urged about its pivotal support 21 in counterclockwise direction by spring 25 while latch control element 17 is constantly urged in clockwise direction about its pivotal support 14 by spring 18.

In order to operate the detent D to etect release of control element 17 and permit movement thereof, together with the latch L, from operative or door latched position into operated or door unlatched position, I provide a detent control member herein illustrated in the form of an arm generally indicated at 29 and pivotally mounted at its lower end on a pin 30 carried by cover plate 8. As shown in Figure 2, the inner edge 31 of control arm 29 is bent over to form a detent engaging face 32 which operatively engages a cam face 33 on detent D. Movement of arm 29 about its pivotal support 30 is limited by a pin 34 which is supported by base plate 7, extends through a slot 35 in arm 29, and has a head portion 36 which assists in guiding and supporting arm 29 by maintaining the boss 37 (see Figure 5) in sliding engagement with the inner face of base plate 7.

In Figure 2 arm 29 is in its operative or door latched position with pin 34 engaging the left-hand end of slot 35. As detent D is urged in counterclockwise direction by spring 25, arm 29 is urged in clockwise direction due to engagement of its detent engaging face 32 with cam face 33 of detent D. Movement of both detent D and arm 29 under the influence of spring 25 is limited by pin 34, which is so positioned relative to slot 35 that a positive stop is provided when detent D is in the position shown in Figure 2.

A flange 38 is formed on the outer edge of arm 29 and is adapted to be engaged by the operating plunger 39 of the outside latch operating unit B. lt will be observed that, when the parts of my door control mechanism are in operative or door latched position as seen in Figure 2, and inward pressure is exerted on the upper end of detent control arm 29, the resulting inward movement of arm 29 will cause detent engaging face 32 thereof to act upon cam face 3 3 of the detent D to rotate the detent in clockwise direction against the pressure of spring 25. This movement will cause the detent abutment to move away from the control element abutment, permitting the spring 18 immediately to rotate control element 17 in clockwise direction. Of course this movement of control clement 17 causes similar movement of the shaft 14 and latch member L from operative or door latched position into operated or door unlatched position.y

The portions of my door control mechanism which have been described up to this point provide means, operable from the outer side of the door, for latching and unlatch-` ing the door. It is usually desirable to provide means for operating the latch mechanism from the inner side of the door and to accomplish this I provide, in addition to detent control member 29, another detent control member herein illustrated in the form of a pawl 43 which is provided with a hub portion 44 pivotally supported in the cover plate 8. As seen in Figure 2, pawl 43 is positioned to engage a cam face 45 on detent D. To move the detent D in clockwise or latch releasing direction from its latch restraining position as seen in Figure 2. it is only necessary to rotate pawl 43 in counterclockwise direction, thus causing corresponding clockwise rotation of detent D. This movement of pawl 43 may bc accomplished independently of control arm 29.

A remote control latch operating unit (not shown) is usually provided inside the door some distance away from edge wall 3. Accordingly, an operating member is pro vided such as a shaft 46 having a flattened end portion 47 (Figures 1 and 3). Such end portion is operatively engaged in one of the two angularly spaced slots 48 or 49 in hub 44 of pawl 43 (Figure 2). Shaft 46 extends between and generally parallel to the outer and inner door panels 1 and 2 to the inside remote control latch operating unit.

In order to prevent unauthorized operation of the door control mechanism to release and permit opening of the door, I provide means for restraining movement of latch member L from operative or door closed position into operated or door released position. As illustrated in Figures 1, 3 and 5, this comprises a detent blocking or restraining member R which is pivotally supported on aV pin 55 carried by the edge wall 13 of the housing. Member R lies generally parallel and adjacent to edge wall 13 and has a lower detent engaging end 56 (Figure 1) which is adapted to be moved into and out of restraining position upon movement of the member R about its pivotal support. Movement of member R into latch restraining position is limited by engagement of the end portion 56 with the inner surface of the base plate 7. Figures 2 and 4to 6, inclusive, show this locking or restraining position of member R. It lwill be noted that, in order to permit the end 56 of member R to lrnove to and from its locking or restraining position, the cover plate 8 of the housing is cut back at 57 (Figure 4) away from edge wall 13.

Detent D is formed with a projecting lock arm portion 58 having a stop face 59 which is adapted to be engaged as shown in Figure 2 by the lower edge 56 of end portion 56 of restraining member R. From Figure l it will be noted that when the door' control mechanism is in latch restraining position the outer edge surface 56 of end portion 56 engages the inner face of base plate 7. When in this positionthe lower edge .56 of end portion 56 is disposed directly above land in blocking `relation to the stop face v59 of the detent blocking arm 58 and outer edge 56 of endportion 56 presses against base plate 7, thus limiting movement of member R in detent blocking direction.

By positioning and supporting detent D and restraining member R as described above, attempts to move detent D from latch holding positiontoward latch releasing position will not impose any substantial lateral bending load on member R or cause pressure thereof against edge wall 13. This permits member R to be made substantially at and of relatively thin material, thus reducing the over-all width of the entire mechanism. It will be noted that member R .moves ina plane which is substantially parallel to edge portion 13, on which it is mounted, such movement continuing until offset portion 60 of member R abuts a stop member 61, which is bent inwardly from edge wall 13 as best shown in Figure 3. When urged in latch .releasing direction, stop face 59 of detent D engages the lower edge 56 of member R and exerts a force or pressure thereagainst in a direction which is substantially parallel to the plane of movement of member R and normal to the axis of pin 55. This relation permits the angle between edge wall 13 and base plate 7 to be varied from that Villustrated through a substantial range, to it various door bevels or installation requirements.

ln order to hold restraining member R in either released position or restraining position, -l provide a toggle or snap-over spring 55a of coil form which spring is disposed between member R and edge wall 13. One end, 55h, is anchored to edge wall 13 and the other end, 55, extends into and is anchored in member R. When member R is in released position, movable end 55c of spring 55a is located above the common center line of pin 55 and the xed end 55h. During movement of restraining member R from released position into restraining position, seen in Figure l movable end 55c of spring 55a moves across to a position below the common center line of pin 55 and fixed end 55h. This causes the snapover action to take place after the forward edge of end 56 of member R passes the inner face of detent D. Thus member R is not urged in restraining direction by spring Sa until after the blocking end is at least partially in detent blocking relation to detent D. it will vbe understood that other types of toggle or snap-over spring mechanisms may be employed to carry out the functions of spring 55a. f

To operate .restraining member R from inside the door, l provide an actuating rod 62 which extends up through a suitable grommet 63 in the door structure and is provided with an operating knob or the like 64 at its upper end. Figures l and 2 illustrate the manner in which the lower end of actuating rod 62 is operatively connected to member R. A hole is formed in offset portion 60 of member R to Yaccommodate the inwardly bent end 62a of rod 62. When in operating position, the lower inner side of rod 62 extends parallel to and adjacent olset portion 60 while the opposite side of rod 62 is parallel to and guided by a projection 13a of edge wall 13 of the housing. Thus rod 62 is guided by members 60 and 13a, the bent end portion 6?;a being held in position in the hole in the upper end 60 of the restraining member R.

Installation of the rod 62 is easily effected when restraining member R is in locking position as seen in Figure l. This is done by holding rod 62 substantially at right angles to its normal operating position and, with the end 62av thereof below projection 13a of edge wall 13, inserting end 62a into the hole in oiset portion 60 of member R. This can be accomplished because, as is evident from Figure l, edge wall 13 is cut away to permit access to the hole in oset portion 6i) when member R is in restraining position. The rod 62 is then swung into its vertical or operating position between the members 60 and 13a.

By properly spacing these members, a rattle-proof, simple and easily assembled operating connection is provided between the rod 62 and restraining member R. The space between members 60 and i3a is substantially equal to the diameter of rod 62, being exceeded by the overall length of the inwardly bent end 62a, i. e., the distance from the end face of bent end 62a to the far side of rod 62. In other words, the space between them is less than the thickness of rod 62 plus the length of the stud-like connecting element at its lower end. Thus when rod 62 is in operating position its lower end cannot become detached from member R. Screws, rivets or other securing devices .are thereby completely eliminated with corresponding reduction in cost and assembly time.

Movement of knob 64! into its lower or locked position, seen in Figures l and 2, from its upper or unlocked position (not shown) moves restraining member R into blocking position to prevent latch releasing movement of detent D. This movement of member R, however, can occur only when detent D, control member 17 and latch member L are in operative or door latched position. When the parts are in operated or door unlatched position, lock arm 58 on detent D lies in the path of end 56 of member R, so that if knob 64 is moved downwardly the member R may be rotated in locking direction only until end S6 thereof strikes the inner side face of the lock arm 58. Thus the latch restraining means which I have incorporated in my door control mechanism are operable to prevent release of the latch mechanism only when the latch is in its operative or door latched position.

In addition-to the inside actuating means for restraining member R, it isof course, desirable to provide means for operating member R from the opposite side of the door. In order to accomplish this, and to combine the latch restraining means incorporated in vmy control mechanism with an outside key controlled lock, I provide means for operatively associating restraining member R with the actuating unit appearing near the bottom of Figure l. A vconnecting link 65 which is pivotally secured atrits upper end to restraining member R extends Adownwardly adjacent edge wall 13 of the housing. At its lower end link 65 is slotted at 66 to provide a limited lost motion connection with a pin 67 mounted on an armk 68. Pin

. 67, which is secured to arm 68 by riveting, is provided With an enlarged head 69 which permits free sliding movement of pin 67 in slot 66. At its opposite end, arm 68 is pivotally mounted in a bracket 70 secured to edge wall 13. ,The hub portion 68' of arm 68 lis provided with a square hole 71 to accommodate the square end of the shaft 72 of an outside key controlled lock (not shown).

This lock is preferably of the type having a neutral position and two opposite end positions. The details of the lock mechanism are not described as they form no part of the present invention, but it shouldbe noted that the lock is so installed that only when the key is in vertical position may the key be inserted into or withdrawn from the lock. When the key is turned from this neutral position, shaft 72 is rotated in the corresponding direction. Thus when the key is rotated in one direction, arm 68 is moved downwardly into the position shown in phantom lines in Figure 1 and when the key is rotated in the opposite direction, arm 68 is moved upwardly into its opposite end position.

As the key may be withdrawn only when it is in its neutral position, arm 68 will always be moved back into the neutral position shown in full lines in Figure 1 whenever the key is withdrawn from the lock. When arm 68 is in neutral position, the pin and slot connection between arm 68 and link 65 permits the restraining member R to be moved at will by rod 62 and knob 64 from restraining to released position and return without changing the position of or exerting any substantial rotating force on arm 68. Movement of rod 62 and knob 64 from locked to unlocked position merely causes link 65 to be lifted, movement from unlocked to locked position causes link 65 to move downward by the same amount. In either case, slot 66 permits relative sliding movement between link 65 and arm 68. Thus, whenever the key is out of the lock, the door control mechanism can be manually locked or unlocked from inside the door as desired by the operator.

From the above description it will be seen that I have provided a door control mechanism having latch restraining means, movable into and out of latch restraining position only when the latch member is in operative or full latched position, together with means whereby the restraining means can be operated from either side of the door to either lock or unlock the door regardless of the position of the restraining means.

Figure 5 illustrates the substantial vertical spacing that is possible between the latch member L and ange 38 on control arm 29.

This substantial spacing is desirable where, on account of the low center of gravity of the vehicle door or forl other reasons, it is desired to locate the latch member L relatively low on the door while, in order to facilitate convenient operation, it is desired to locate an outside push button relatively high ou the door. In Figure 2 a push button arrangement is illustrated in which button 103 carries an inwardly extending tubular extension 104 slidably supported in a sleeve 105 forming a part of housing 106. The bezel 107 limits outward movement of button 103 under the influence of coil spring 108 which engages and extends between the under side of button 103 and the fixed inner end of housing 106. The operating plunger 39 is carried by the end portion 109 of tubular member 104 and, as has been previously explained, is adapted to engage flange 38 on detent control arm 29.

It will be understood that various other operating arrangements such as rotating handles, grip actuated mechanisms, etc. may be employed for manually effecting operation of the door control mechanism.

The phraseology employed in this specification and the appended claims has been chosen for purposes of description and not of limitation and it will also be( understood that, although I have described the illustrated embodiment of my invention in considerable detail, variations and changes may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention. Modifications in the form and arrangements of the parts will occur to those skilled in the art. I do not, therefore, wish to be limited to the particular device herein shown and described but claim as my invention all embodiments thereof coming within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a door latch mechanism, a housing structure having an edge wall, a latch member supported on said housing structure for movement in a plane substantially ment substantially parallel to said edge wall, a projection on said edge wall spaced from said latch locking member, an actuating rod for said latch locking member, said actuating rod having a bent end portion and said latch locking member having an aperture formed therein opposite said projection on said edge wall, said bent end portion of said rod being insertable into and removable from said aperture from the side of said latch locking member which is adjacent said projection when said rod and latch locking member are in one angular relation, the space between said projection and said latch locking member being less than the overall length of said bent end portion of said rod whereby said rod is maintained in said aperture by said projection when said rod is swung from said angular relation into the space between said projection and said latch locking member.

2. In a control mechanism, a housing structure, a movable restraining member pivotally supported on said housing structure, a projection on said housing structure spaced from said restraining member, an actuating rod for said restraining member, said actuating rod having a bent end portion and said restraining member having an aperture formed therein opposite said projection, said bent end portion of said rod being insertable into and removable from said aperture from the side of said restraining member which is adjacent said projection when said rod and restraining member are in one angular relation, the space between said projection and said restraining member being less than the overall length of said bent end portion of said rod whereby said rod is maintained in said aperture by said projection when said rod is swung from said angular relation into the space between said projection and said restraining member.

3. In a control mechanism, a housing structure, a movable restraining member pivotally supported on said housing structure and having a rod receiving aperture therein, a projection on said housing structure spaced from said restaining member, an actuating rod for said restraining member, said actuating rod having a bent end portion, said bent end portion of said rod being insertable into and removable from said rod receiving aperture in said restraining member from the side of said restraining member which is adjacent said projection when said rod and restraining member are in one angular relation, the space between said projection and said restraining member being less than the overall length of said bent end portion of said rod whereby said rod is maintained in position by said projection when said rod is swung from said angular relation into the space between said projection and said restraining member.

4. In a control mechanism, a housing structure having a cut-away portion, a movable restraining member pivotally supported on said housing structure, said restraining member having an aperture formed therein opposite said cut-away portion, an actuating rod for said restraining member, said rod having a bent end portion insertable into and removable from said aperture from the side of said restraining member which is adjacent the cut-away portion of said housing structure when said rod and restraining member are in one angular relation and being maintained in said aperture by said housing structure when said rod is swung from said angular relation into the space between said housing structure and said restraining member.

5. In a control mechanism, a housing structure having a cut-away portion, a movable restraining member pivotally supported on said housing structure, an actuating rod for said restraining member, said actuating rod having a bent end portion insertable into and removable from said restraining member from the side thereof which is adjacent said cut-away portion of said housing structure when said rod and restraining member are in one angular relation, the space between said restraining member and said housing structure being less than the overall length of said bent end portion of said rod whereby said rod is maintained by said housing structure when said rod is swung from said angular relation into the space between said housing structure and said restraining member.

6. In a control mechanism, a housing structure having a cut-away portion, a movable restraining member pivotally supported on said housing structure, said restraining member having an aperture formed therein opposite said cut-away portion, an actuating rod for said restraining member, said actuating rod having a bent end portion insertable into and removable from said aperture from the side of said restraining member which is adjacent the cut-away portion of said housing structure when said rod and restraining member are in one angular relation, the space between said housing structure and said restraining member being less than the overall length of said bent end portion of said rod whereby said rod is maintained in said aperture by said housing structure when said rod is swung from said angular relation into the space between said housing structure and said restraining member.

7. A latch comprising frame structure having a project* ing guiding portion; latch mechanism on the frame structure; a rod-like actuating member mounted for movement in juxtaposition to the projecting guiding portion of the frame structure, said actuating member extending beyond opposite edges of the projecting guiding portion of the frame structure in two oppositely extending directions; operating means at one end of the actuating member; movable blocking means for the latch mechanism at the other end of the actuating member, said blocking means being spaced from the projecting guiding portion of the frame structure by a distance substantially equal to the thickness of the actuating member; and, interconnecting the actuating member and the blocking means, a stud-like connecting element which is carried by one thereof and which projects therefrom into an opening in the other.

8. Door control mechanism as in claim 7 in which the connecting element is formed integrally with the part by which it is carried.

9. Door control mechanism as in claim 8 in which the connecting element is formed integrally with the actuating member.

10. Door control mechanism as in claim 9 in which the actuating member is bent to form the connecting element.

11. Door control mechanism as in claim 10 in which the actuating member is bent at right angles at a point near its end to form the connecting element.

12. In a control mechanism, a base structure, a movable member pivotally supported on said base structure and having a rod receiving aperture therein, a projection on said base, structure spaced from said movable member, an actuating rod for said movable member, said actuating rod having a transversely extending end portion, said transversely extending end portion of said rod being insertable into and removable from said rod receiving aperture in said movable member from the side of said movable member which is adjacent said projection when said rod and movable member are in one angular relation, the space between said projection and said movable member being less than the overall length of said transversely extending end portion of said rod whereby said rod is maintained in position by said projection when said rod is swung from said angular relation into the space between said projection and said movable member.

Peters Sept. 27, 1932 Cloutier et al Feb. 10, 1942 

